burpee



` Sheets-sheetl.

Patanted July v25, 1893,

lill! (No Model.) l I v H. BURPBR TUBE SRPR FOR 'FEED -W'IER HETERS. No.502,2\23.

(No Model.) 2 sheets-sheen 2.

G. H. BURPEBF.

TUBE SGRAPER FOR'PBED WATER HBATERS. No. 502,223. Patented Jfu1y=25',1893'.

I ff

Q/aww' jme/mor t gw www GEORGE H. BURPEE, OF NEW YORK,

PATENT OFFICE.

N. Y., AssIcNoR To THE AMERICAN FUEL ECONOMIZER AND ENGINEERING COMPANY,OF SAME PLACE.

TUBE-SCRAPER FOR FEED-WATER HEATERS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 502,223, dated July 25,1893.

Application filed March 9, 1891.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE H. BURPEE, of the city, county, and State ofNew York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inTube-Scrapers forFeed-Water Heaters; and I do hereby declare that thefollowing is a full and exact description thereof, reference being hadto the accompanying drawings, and to the letters of reference markedthereon, making a part of this specication.

My invention relates to the automatic, tubescraping devices in feed-water heaters or fuel-economizers for use in connection with largefurnaces for steam-boilers, and to the mechanism for operating thescrapers.

It has for its object to so simplify the construction of the Scrapersand their operative mechanism as to reduce the cost and increase theefficiency thereof.

It consists in the novel construction and combination of the severalparts of said scraping mechanism substantially as hereinafter describedand claimed.

In the accompanying drawingsz-Figure 1 is an end view of a feed-waterheater fitted with my invention, with its end wall removed to disclosethe heating tubes, and the clutch device in the mechanism for actuatingthe Scrapers shown in vertical section upon the line 'Lu-w of Fig. 3.Fig. 2 is a cross-section, in line y-y of Fig. 1, illustrating thearrangement of the scrapers for one section of the heating-tubes. Fig. 3is a cross-section in line w-w of Fig. 1, the driving-mechanism by whichthe Scrapers are actuated being shown in elevation. Fig. 4 is anelevation in detail of the spiral cam-face of the wheel by which theclutch-lever is operated and Fig. 5

is a cross-section on the line z-z of Fig. 4:.

Similar letters indicate like parts in all of the figures.

The first part of my invention relates to the Scrapers for theheating-tubes. These Scrapers consist of curved plates A, A', each thesection of a cylinder, and each adapted to conform to and closelyembrace one`third of the circumference of a heating-tube, so that threeof the scraping-plates when assembled upon a heating-tube willcompletely encircle the same, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. The two curvedplates A and A for each Serial No. 384,258. (No model.)

scraper are connected by a coupling-bar A2 and are supported against aheating-tube W to travel longitudinally upon it, by means of a framecomposed of a central bar B, (see Fig. 2) adapted to pass between thedouble row of tubes in each section of the waterheater or economizer andhaving cross arms B B projecting therefrom to extend in each directionbetween the tubes of each row. An exterior central lug tt, is formedpreferably midway the length, of the coupling bar A2 of each scraper toproject out far enough to rest either upon the bar B, or the end of oneof the arms B B of the supporting-frame as the case may be, the ends ofthe arms being severally forked to bring them in position to provide asuitable bearing for the lugs. In order that the lugs projecting fromthe Scrapers located on opposite sides of the central barB of the framemay rest thereon side by side without interference,so that thelugs maybemadelong enough to have a secure bearing on the central barwithoutincreasin g th e space between adjacent rows of tubes, the forkedends of the crossarms are made of unequal length,so that the lugs on theremaining two Scrapers which embrace the tubes on opposite sides of thebar may find proper support up/on-said arms without requiring any changein the position of the lugs on the respective Scrapers. The scrapers areall made to correspond in every particular so as to be duplicates, and,by means of the arms B B having forked ends of unequal length in thesupporting-frame may all be interchanged upon the tubes. Preferably theframe is made double or in two thicknesses, to be united by bolts b asshown in Figs. 1 and 2 so that the lugs ct, ct, maybe clasped betweenthem. Each scraper frame is fitted with a central rod O to which isattached a chain C', carried over a pulley D, mounted above the tubesupon an axis parallel with the length of the scraper-frame and of suchdiameter as that the chain carried over itfor one section of theheatingtubes shall drop into position for attachment to the central rodC of the scraper-frame for the next section. The scraper-frames for theseveral sections are thus suspended in pairs, each pair upon a singlechain carried over the one pulley, so that, as the pulley revolves iD.

either direction, one of the frames with its scrapeissliall be drawnupward over theoneset of tubes while the other frame will be allowed todrop upon its set of tubes. By reversing the movement of the pulley atproper intervals all the sciapers are made to travel continuously backand forth, up and down, over the entire length of the tubes, so as toprevent any accumulation or incrustation of soot or rust thereon. Shouldany scraper' become blocked the pulley actuating the pair to which itbelongs will slip under its chain and so perinit the other Scrapers tocontinue their reciprocations though with an increased strain upon themotor.

The bearing blocks E, E', for the journals of the several chainpulleysD, D, are supported upon two cliannel-irons or beams F, F, extending thelength of the heater, and these are mounted at each end upon bracketsF', F', (see Fig. 3) resting upon the top of the heater. Thebearing-block E at one end of each pulley-axle is so formed, as shown inFig. 3, as to furnish a beaiing for a shaft G, which is made to extendata right angle with the pulleyaxles, from end to end of the heater.Beveled pinions H, H, are secured upon this longitudinal shaft G, toengage beveled teeth formed upon the face of each chain-pulley D, sothat, by the rotation of the shaft G, all the pulleys will be made torevolve in unison. The shaft G is provided at one end with a largeworin-wheel I secured thereto to gear with a worm J upon one end of acountershaft J', mounted in suitable bearings under the channel-beams F,F, and upon whose opposite end are fitted two idle bevel-wheels K, K,geared to a bevel-wheel L, upon the driving-shaft M, of the machine soas to be revolved continuously thereby each in an opposite direction.etween the two idle-wheels K, K, a collar N is fitted to slide looselyupon the shaft J', to which it is however keyed by a spline t, (see Fig.l) so as to revolve therewith, although free to move longitudinallythereon. At each end of this sliding-collarN are secured notched disksN' (see Fig. 3) adapted to engage, as a clutch, a counterpart notcheddisk K', on the hub of the opposite idle-wheel K, so that, by slidingthe collar N in the one direction or the other, the shaft J' may becoupled to the one loose or idle driving-Wheel K, or the other, and bethereby made to rotate in the direction corresponding with that of thewheel with which it is thus coupled. The clutch is automatically shiftedfrom the one loose driving-wheel to the other at the moment the scrapershave reached the ends of the` tubes over which they travel, so as toreverse the direction of rotation of the shaft J', and of the chainpulleys D, D, geared thereto in manner as described, by the action of areversing lever P pivoted intermediate the wheels K, K, above theclutch-collar N to oscillate in a vertical plane, its lower end belowits pivot being transversely slotted as at e, to receive a pin e',

projecting from a forked shifting-.yoke V, pivoted to swing on the pin fserving as a pivot for the lever I), and to embrace the collar N betweenits clutch disks i The slot e, is so extended as to allowa slight p layof the lever independently of the pin, which, when the end of the slotis reached thereby, operates, under the continued movement of the leveiin that direction, to carry the yoke, collar and clutch with it. Thelonger, upper end of the lever is Iitted with a weight Q to enforce itsmovement in either direction from a vertical position. The movement ofthereversing-lever P beyond the vertical in each direction is producedby means of a horizontal sliding-rod R mounted in suitable ways andslotted at its outer end to embrace the lever as shown in Fig. 5. Thissliding-rod is made to extend across in front of the face of theworin-wheel I, parallel therewith, and carries an adjustable finger Sadapted to enter and engage a spiral groove or scroll T, f orined in theface of the worm-wheel and encircling its axis, (see Fig. i.) Theengagement of the finger S with the scroll or spiral cam-groove T,operates, as the worm-wheel I revolves in one direction, to slide therod R outward, and in the opposite direction, inward, and the length ofthe rod and the position of the iinger S thereon are so adjusted withreference to the reversing-lever P, vas that, when, in the revolution ofthe wheel I and of the chainpulleys D, D, secured upon the same shaft,the Scrapers have reached the ends of the heating-tubes, thereversing-lever will be carried over so far beyond a perpendicular lineas that it will drop in that direction by its gravity and by thismovement will throw the clutch out of engagement with the one idlewheeland into engagement with the other, so as to reverse the movements ofthe chainwheels and consequently of the Scrapers. The slot e, in thelower end of the reversing-lever P, and that in the rod R through whichthe upper end of the lever extends, permit the lever to be brought backto a vertical position independently of the clutches. Thus, in theoperation of the machine, the continuous revolution of thedriving-pulley will operate to produce automatically a constantreciprocating movement of the Scrapers over and upon each of thevertical tubes in the heater from end to end thereof, their movementbeing automatically reversed as soon as the ends of the tubes arereachedthereby.

I am aware that a feed-water heater has hitherto been described as beingprovided with a tube-scraper in which a central bar has forkedsupporting-arms with ends of equal length and each scraper has thereon asupporting-lug, but the Scrapers are not symmetA rical with respect to avertical line passing through the lug and the Scrapers are so locatedwith reference to each other that the bearing points of the lugs on thesupporting arms and on the central bar come directly opposite eachother. The consequence is that the scrapers IOO sin

are not interchangeable throughout and that were the device placed upontubes set as closely as it is now the practice to set them, the lugswhich rest upon the central bar and stand opposite one another would ofnecessity be so short as to be liable to slip offfrequently.

In the present case each scraper is symmet# any position and in theplace of any other,

and at the same time the supporting-lugs can be of such length as willeffectually prevent all liability of their slipping off .the central barwhile the device is in operation.

I claim as my invention- I; The combination in a feed-Water heater of aseries of vertical tubes arranged in two rows, a central bar extendinghorizontally between said rows, arms projecting from said bar and eachbeing forked and having diverging ends of -unequal length and tripleinterchangeable scrapers surrounding said tubes and having each a lug onits outer face and each being symmetrical with respect to a verticalline passing through said lng, the opposite lugs of the scrapersonopposite sides of said central bar having bearing points thereon offsetwith respect to each other and the opposing lngs of the Scrapers `onopposite sides of one of said forked arms having bearing points on thelong and short ends respectively of said forked arms, substantially inthe manner and for the purpose herein set forth.

2. The combination with a driving-shaft for the chain pulleys in afeed-water heater constructed substantially as described, and aWorm-wheel on said shaft, of a spiral or scroll cam upon the side faceof said worm-wheel, a countershaft geared to said driving-shaft,idle-wheels revolving loosely on said countershaft, a' driving-wheelgeared to both'idlewheels to produce their revolution in oppositedirections, a clutch interposed between the two idle-wheels to engagethe one or the other and keyed to the countershaft, a pivotedreversing-lever operating by gravity to throw the clutch out ofengagement with the one idle-wheel into engagement with the other, and asliding-rod coupled to the lever and engaging 'the spiral cam, wherebythe reversinglever is oscillated and the clutch shiftedby the movementof the rod as it reaches either end of the cam in the revolution of thecam- Y Wheels, substantially in the manner and forthe purpose herein setforth.

3. The combination in the reversing mech-V anism of a feed-water heater,withV a pulley on the main shaft actuating the Scrapers, a

-Worm-Wheel upon said shaft having a spiral cam upon its lateral face,of a swinging yokev pivoted upon the axis of the lever having va lateralpin projecting from its lower end

